Avatar: The Alternate Airbender - The Boy in The Magma
by TIME PUNCHER
Summary: In an alternate timeline, how would have A:TLA turned out if the Water Nation had attacked instead of the Fire Nation?
1. Chapter 1

Water, Earth, Fire, Air.

My uncle used to tell me stories about the old days. A time of peace when the Avatar kept balance between the Water Nation, Earth Kingdom, Fire Tribes, and Air Nomads. But that all changed when the Water Nation attacked.

Only the Avatar mastered all four elements. Only he could stop the ruthless waterbenders. But when the world needed him most, he vanished.

A hundred years have passed and the Water Nation is nearing victory in the war. Two years ago, my father and the men of my tribe journeyed to the Earth Kingdom. They left to help fight against the Water Nation, leaving me and my sister to look after our tribe.

Some people believe that the Avatar was never reborn into the Air Nomads. That the cycle was broken. But I haven't lost hope. I still believe that somehow the Avatar will return to save the world.

* * *

A lush, green meadow stretched out. Bordered by trees on all sides, it was pristine in it's almost undisturbed, natural beauty. Birdsong filled the air. Looking around, one wouldn't believe that this was once a scorched, barren wasteland. Yet nature, as always, prevailed. Save for the blades crushed underfoot by two children, the verdant grass was almost untouched. They moved silently, staying low and remaining cautious. They were hunting, but not in the fatal sense. They were hunting for an escapee.

"Shh!" hushed one of the children, a girl. Her long, black hair was arranged into a small, practical bun. She wore simple garments. A red, strapless midriff cloth top and matching pants with a yellow sash tied around her waist. "I see it up ahead!"

"So do I, Azula. It's a hippo cow, it's pretty hard to miss!" the boy hissed back. He was the elder of the two, but his sister had a tendency to take the lead. She was eager to prove herself, both in her independence and ability to lead. Her brother was still unsure of himself, uncertain of his abilities or his place in the world. His left eye was scarred from a severe burn, something he rarely liked to talk about or explain.

The younger boy also wore red, cloth garments with a yellow sash. The only noticeable differences were his sleeveless shirt and his simple ponytail. A hundred feet from where they both crouched stood the white and black form of the hippo cow. Grazing in the meadow, it had escaped for one of the tribes pens and had made its way to this clearing. A century ago this island had experienced a series of eruptions, twice in the span of twelve years. The lava flows had decimated much of the island. But from that wasteland, plants once again bloomed. Trees grew and birds returned. The cooled, hardened lava carried minerals with it. From all that destruction, life took hold and grew almost greater than it had before.

This specific area was especially loved by any escaped hippo cows. For some reason the grass here seemed greener and even tastier to the grazing animals.

"Be quiet and don't do anything until do and follow my lead." Azula whispered back, ignoring his dry sarcasm. "If we can spook it into those trees to the left then it should follow one of the old trails back to the farm!"

"Azula, we were told not to worry about one hippo cow." the boy reminded his younger sibling. "The rest of the herd is fine and we fixed the-" Azula leapt to her feet, cutting him off mid-sentence. She took off sprinting towards the animal, fast and low. "Or we could rush it." he sighed.

The two siblings ran towards the huge mammal. They tried to wait until the last possible moment before allowing it to see them. As they sprint past the protruding rock formation in the center of the field the animal raised its head. They'd been spotted.

"Now!" Azula cried. The young girl leapt into the air with a spin, bringing her right foot up over her head while spinning in a circle. As she landed, she brought her foot swinging back to the ground. With it, she sent a crescent wave of flame flying behind the rump of the creature.

"Midsection! Midsection!" shouted her brother, coming up behind her. Coming to a dead stop he thrust out both his fists. One was positioned his over head with the other at chest height. He sent two smaller jets of flame towards the middle of hippo cows body. The flames died out mid-air before they could even singe the startled animal.

Almost immediately, the black-spotted behemoth started running. It began heading for the leftmost treeline as the children had hoped it would.

"Yes!" cried Azula, "Keep the pressure on, don't let up!"

"Wait, Azula, not too much! You might make her double back!" but it was too late. The raven-haired girl was letting loose a flurry of punches. A series of small fireballs flew after the frightened creature. With a sharp left turn, the hippo cow came to an abrupt stop, staring at the two children.

"Uh… Zuko?" the girl asked. Uncertainty tainted her words for the first time since they had left their village.

"Run." answered her brother, his voice flat as the hippo cow pawed the ground, snorting.

"Zuko?!" the hippo cow lowered its enormous horned head and started charging at the two.

"RUN!"


	2. Chapter 2

Spinning around, the firebending siblings started to run for safety. The angry hippo cow barreled towards them thought the open expanse of the green meadow. There was nowhere for the two to hide and no hope of outrunning the beast. Nowhere save for the rock formation they had both passed earlier.

"Up there!" Zuko pointed to the top of the rounded top of the rock. It was taller than both of the youths and their only hope of escape. Leaping into the air, twin jets of flame erupted from the young boys bare feet. They gave him enough of a boost to catch the top of the formation and crawl the rest of the way up.

Behind him, his sister followed suite, but her flames were larger and more powerful. Carrying her clear above the rock, she landed deftly on its top, and not a moment too soon. The raging hippo cow had closed the distance between itself and the two children. It crashed headfirst into the rock they now stood upon. It struck the rock with such force that a crack appeared, running from the base almost clear to the top. Shaking its head, the hippo cow looked around for a moment, dazed but never thinking to glance up. Satisfied that its aggressors had disappeared, the grazer turned. It wandered off into the trees, although not in the direction the two had wanted.

"Ugh! You were supposed to follow my lead, Zuko!" Azula exclaimed, exasperated.

"Your lead?" Zuko snapped back, "You're supposed to herd hippo cows gently! Push them too hard and you'll spook them! You'd know that if you weren't so busy trying to run off and prove yourself every day!"

Beneath the two, the crack began to grow.

"It's all that's been on your mind ever since Uncle Iroh was taken and it's only gotten worse since mom died! And now that dad and the rest have gone to the Earth Kingdom, you think you need to be the one to protect the tribe!" Zuko had risen to his feet now. The stress of the moment was the final straw. All the frustration he had bottled up over the years was finally coming out. He was too focused to hear the sound of rock splitting or to see the growing crack, but Azula did.

"Uh… Zuko?" she asked, looking down at her feet.

"I'm left herding the hippo cows so we have food and milk! Have you ever tried milking a hippo cow? It's not easy!" the boy continued, unfazed.

"Zuko! Calm down!" his sister pleaded, holding out a hand. More cracks were appearing, splintering off in every direction.

"No! I'm sick of this! I'm not going to have you boss me around just so you can feel useful! You want to prove how independent you are, then you can start doing it on your own!"

With that last shout, the rock they both stood upon shattered completely. The force sent the two falling to the ground with a yelp. There, the two stared up at a large sphere made of what looked like mildly translucent black glass.

"Zuko, what did you do?" Azula asked, amazed.

"Me? I didn't do that. Did I?" her brother asked, sounding uncertain.

"It exploded while you were shouting, it was definitely you." she replied.

It was then, from within the black sphere, a light began to glow. Faint at first but growing in intensity. As the light became brighter, it became easier to see within the sphere. An outline formed as the two looked on, of a boy sitting cross-legged in the center, in some kind of meditative pose. Suddenly, the boy opened his eyes, which glowed brighter than the rest. Bright white arrows appeared on his arms and head.

"Someone's alive in there!" Zuko cried, "We have to help them!" jumping to his feet, the boy yanked the studded kanabo club free from where it was tied to his sisters waist. He took off running towards the sphere.

"Wait, Zuko! We don't know what's in there!" Azura called out, trying to stop him, but he ignored her.

Swinging the club, the young boy at first left no noticeable difference on the black glass. Despite that, he wasn't deterred. As swing after swing impacted against the dark sphere, a large crack began to form.

"Zuko! No!"

With one final swing, the frantic firebender knocked a hole in the glass. Yet before he could do any more, the entire spherical structure exploded. There was an outwards in an eruption of wind and the light contained within shot into the sky. The two youths shielded their eyes from the blinding glow. Above them, the sky became lit by the lights of an aurora borealis, something never seen in that part of the world.

"Zuko, what did you do?!" Azula cried.

Not far off the coast of the island, an iron battleship cut through the waters. An intimidating, spiked prow made of ice aided its efforts. Aboard the vessel, a young boy gazed up at the pillar of light coming from the island. His head was clean shaven, save for a single ponytail. He wore the traditional blue and white dyed furs of the Water Nation. He watched, expressionless as the column of light gradually disappeared.

"At last." he stated. Behind him, an old gray-haired man sat cross-legged at a low table. He sipped tea while playing a game involving small tiles. "Do you know what this means, Iroh?"

"I won't get to finish my tea?" The old man asked, he himself having noticed the light as well.

"It means our search is over." From his table, the old man groaned, causing the young boy to spin and face him, "That light, you saw it! It has to be him!"

"Oh, it's just the northern lights, Prince Sokka." Iroh said, waving his hand dismissively. "We've been through this before, I just don't want you getting your hopes up. Sit down, enjoy a nice calming cup of jasmine tea."

The young prince scoffed, "The northern lights? At this time of year? At this time of day? In this part of the world? Localized entirely on that island?!" he shouted, exploding in anger. "I don't need tea, I need the Avatar! We follow the light!"


	3. Chapter 3

Zuko looked around, confused for a moment. The blast of wind had knocked him off his feet and he'd lost his bearings. Sitting up, he found himself staring at his sister's back. She'd apparently shielded him reflexively. Looking at the shattered globe, Zuko saw the glowing figure from within the glass.

"Hold it!" Azula shouted as a warning to the stranger. Slipping into a defensive stance, she was ready to strike at the first sign of trouble.

Slowly, the glowing figure rose to its feet. As it did, the glow coming from its eyes and markings on its body began to fade until all that stood before them was… a boy. A young boy, scarcely Azula's age and completely bald. Adorning his body were simple, blue tattoos on his head and arms. He stood motionless for a moment before wobbling slightly. His legs gave way as he slid down the side of the shattered sphere. Lunging forward out of reflex, Azula grabbed the boy by his yellow and orange robes. She held him up before staring at him dumbly, but still looked ready to strike.

"Wait, Azula!" Zuko protested, leaping to his feet. It was enough to snap the young girl to her senses and lower her fist.

Laying the boy down gently on the grass, Azula peered at the tattooed boy. Both with confusion and curiosity. Gradually, the boy opened his eyes, looking back at her. A breeze passed through the meadow at that moment. It caught a few strands of the young girls hai that had come loose in all the excitement. Her hair waved gently in front of her face. The boy let out a breath and opened his mouth to speak.

"Can I ask you something?" he whispered to Azula.

"What is it?" she replied, still fascinated.

The boys eyes suddenly lit up, "Will play kuai ball with me?" he asked in an excited voice, no longer whispering.

Azula was taken aback. "Um… If you want?"

With that, a gust of wind seemed to rush from beneath the boy. It pushed him up into the air before he landed lightly on his feet.

"Woah!" exclaimed Zuko.

The boy looked around. "So, what's going on here?"

Rising to her feet, Azula's serious demeanor returned. "You tell us! What were you doing in there?" she demanded, waving a hand at the remnants of the glass rock, "How were you able to breathe?!"

Turning to look at the globe, the boy looked puzzled. "I'm… not sure." he confessed.

At that moment, a low, animal-like groan came from within the sphere, making the boy gasp. Before the siblings could react, the boy was scrambling up the side of the black glass. He leapt over the edge and back inside the crater within. Following the boy, Azula and Zuko watched as he landed softly atop a gigantic, furry creature. A creature much larger than any hippo cow.

"Appa!" the boy cried, "Are you okay? Wake up, buddy!"

Leaning down, the boy pulled one of the creatures eyes open, only to have it close again the moment he let go. Jumping deftly down, he positioned himself under its chin, attempting to lift it, but to no avail. Zuko and Azula stared in bewilderment at the massive animal. It opened its mouth, big enough to swallow the boy whole and… licked him. The boy laughed.

"Appa! Hahaha! You're okay!" he exclaimed, throwing his arms around the monster. It had the horns of a steer and six legs, thick as most tree trunks. It was covered in soft, white fur save for its head. There, a brown arrow ran from its forehead, all the way to its huge, flat tail, much like the blue tattoos the boy had.

"What in the world is that?" Azula asked in shock.

"Appa. He's my flying bison." the answered simply, as if that didn't raise more questions.

"Sure," replied Azula, gesturing to her brother, "And this is Zuko, my levitating tiger monkey."

The boy opened his mouth as if to reply, but as he did the bison opened its own mouth. It let out a series of mighty coughs, showering the young girl in spittle.

"Ah! Aahh!" she cried out, wiping her face.

"I'm so sorry!" apologized the young, bald boy. Azula sighed in frustration. "So… you guys live around here?" he asked quickly, trying to change the subject.

"Don't answer that, Zuko!" Azula said, holding up a hand to silence her brother. "You saw that light, it was probably a signal flare for the Water Navy!"

Zuko rolled his eyes, "Come on, Azula. The Water Navy? Does he look like anyone from the Water Navy to you?" The young firebender brushed past his sister, holding out his hand in greeting. "I'm Zuko, That's my sister, Azula. She's a little jumpy sometimes. Who are you?"

The tattooed boy reached out to shake Zuko's hand, "I'm A..." another breeze rolled through the meadow. The pollen that came with it tickled the boys nose. "Aaahhh... ahhh... aaah aaah aaah AAACHOOOO!" With a mighty sneeze, the boy rocketed into the air. He then plummeted back down t land in front of the stunned duo, sniffling and rubbing his nose. "I'm Aang."

Azula narrowed her eyes, incredulously. "You just… sneezed. And then flew ten feet into the air."

"Really?" Anng asked, looking up. "It felt like fifteen."

Zuko's mouth dropped open as realisation dawned on his face, "You're… You're an airbender!"

"Yup!" Aang replied, beaming.

Azula looked around, confused. "There has to be a gas geyser around here from one of the old lava flows. Airbenders with flying bison and huge beams of light? I must be losing my mind!" she turned to her brother "Zuko, can we go home now? None of this is making any sense."

"If you like, I can give you guys a ride!" Aang offered. Pushing himself into the air with a gust of wind. The young boy landed on the bison's head before leaping into a saddle positioned on its back. From there he grabbed a pair of reigns. Looking closer, the two siblings noticed they were tied around the creatures horns.

"Sure." Zuko answered, climbing up onto the animal's giant head and joining Aang in the saddle. "It beats walking home."

"What? No!" Azula protested, "I'm not getting on that thing!"

Zuko shrugged. "Would you rather walk back and hope you don't run into that hippo cow again?"

Azula opened her mouth to protest, but closed it again after a moment, sighing and climbing up to join the two boys. Once she had sat down, she crossed her arms. She pouted while looking around with a slight air of distrust. Zuko looked at Aang and nodded.

"Alright, if this is your first time flying, hold on tight!" Aang exclaimed. "Appa!" Yip yip!" The newcomer shook the reigns and the bison… yawned. Nothing happened.

"Wow. Such a majest- AAAh!" As Azula started to make her sarcastic comment, the bison rocketed into the air. It cleared the tree tops before flying away.

"Hold on!" Aang reminded the duo.


	4. Chapter 4

Aboard the Water Navy ship, Prince Sokka stared out of the spotting deck. The sun was setting and there had been no more pillars of light to be seen. The original had occurred a few hours walking distance from a nearby Fire Tribe village, making it a likely destination for the Avatar. As Sokka considered his next move, Iroh approached from behind.

"I'm going to bed now." He said, making an exaggerated yawning gesture. "A man needs his rest, old or young. You need to sleep too, Prince Sokka. Even if the Avatar is still alive, you aren't going to find him. Three generations of your family have all tired and failed."

The Water Prince did not take his eyes away from the waters ahead of them. "Their honor didn't depend on his capture and return. Our does. His hundred years of hiding in cowardice are at an end." Iroh said nothing as he turned to leave, but stopped when Sokka spoke again. "This Fire Tribe village. It's the one you're from, isn't it?"

The older man paused, not turning around. "It is." He answered, flatly and evenly.

"Then if they won't listen to reason, hopefully they'll listen to you. For their sake."

Iroh said nothing. He left the spotting deck as the Prince continued to gaze ahead. The offer of sleep was appealing. Anything to hold off what he would have to do next.

* * *

Low over the tree tops, Appa flew. At the direction of the tattooed young airbender, the bison flew low enough so as not to be spotted from a distance.

"Hey." Azula said, crawling up to where the airbender sat.

"Hey." The boy answered. "What's up?"

"Well, you're an airbender." She said, still sounding somewhat unconvinced. "I'm wondering if you knew what happened to the Avatar."

Aang looked noticeably uneasy. "No. Uhh… I mean, I didn't know him… I suppose I knew people that knew him, but I never did. Sorry." He stammered.

Azula shrugged, seeming satisfied by his answer. "Alright, I just thought I would ask."

Turning away, the young girl went back to sit by her brother. She didn't notice the look of fear that had appeared on Aang's face. He stared ahead as he let his memories wash over him.

* * *

Clouds of ash and soot filled the skies above the flying bison. Lightning crashed, striking the island and water as the volcano below erupted. In the bison's saddle, Aang fought with the reigns. The only light they had were the occasional flashes of lightning and the red hot magma.

The boy cried out as a bolt of lightning nearly struck the animal and its mount. In a mixture of panic and exhaustion, Appa crashed to the ground. His massive body came to rest directly before the encroaching lava. The flying bison groaned. He didn't have the strength to fly any more. Aang looked around frantically, the scorching heat of the lava almost overwhelming them. He began to lose consciousness, the lava mere feet away. Yet before he could, his eyes and tattoo's started to glow white. Putting his hands together, he surrounded both himself and Appa in a ball of wind. It rapidly cooled the air around them. As it did, it pulled the lava up and around them, until they were encased in huge ball of solidified magma. Deep within, the boy pulled moisture from the air before freezing it. With it, he locked himself and the bison into a from of frozen stasis.

* * *

"Aang? Aang!" The voice of Zuko snapped him out of his trance.

"What?" He asked, startled.

"The village! It's just ahead! You can see it!" The boy said, pointing at the approaching buildings in the distance.

"Oh. Sorry." Aang apologized. "I was… thinking..." His voice trailed off for a moment before he shook his head as if to clear it. "Any way! Let's go meet your village! Appa! Yip yip!"

The command wasn't needed, as the bison had already started descending. It aimed for the center of the village, readying itself to land.

* * *

The first rays of morning light had begun to fill the sky when Sokka started to descend into the ships lower levels. They could have reached the village hours ago, but he had ordered them to anchor off shore, out of sight. He'd told himself that he was planning, preparing for the next move, but in truth, he was stalling out of fear. Fear of her.

He stood before a thick steel door, encased in ice. Ice that he was certain had a red tinge to it. He raised his fist to pound on the door. It was coming. As his fist came down, her voice came, echoing from inside. Cold as the ice that encased the door.

"Come in, brother." He hated it when she did that.

He pushed against the door, causing it to swing open. He tried to ignore the knowledge that the ice was the only thing holding it shut and what that meant. Cold mist poured out of the room like a heavy fog. The cold that fell from the room was more than even he could stand. It was colder than anywhere in the arctic lands of the Water Nation. The same red-tinged ice covered every surface within. It made up the furniture within, from the desks to the chairs. Even the bed in the corner was a slab of ice atop which rested a mattress of snow. Books rested on ice shelves. The room had no moisture that could of ruined their pages, it had all been frozen.

Standing in the center of the room was the princess of the Water Nation. Her stillness was unnerving, but then again everything about her was. At the palace, the guards and servants alike had called her the Yellow Empress. There were those who feared her more than the Emperor himself. They all had names for her. Pride of the Emperor. The Beast of the Blood Moon. The Newborn Slayer. Wolf of the Wastes. All were fitting.

Hung over her shoulder was a simple, brown leather water skin. Yellow cloth was wrapped around her feet and calves, leaving only her toes exposed. A yellow and white cloth hung from a yellow belt to cover her lower torso. From her arms hung loose, fur-lined, yellow armwarmers. They covered her hands and stopped just short of her shoulders. A simple yellow top left her shoulders and midriff exposed. Sokka wondered, not for the first time, how she never froze. So much skin exposed to the elements, yet she never appeared cold.

A single blue line ran down her chin from her blue, tattooed lips while the same blue ink tattooed her eyelids. A single horizontal line marked each cheek and along the top of each shoulder ran three more lines. They looked like the claws of a predatory beast had raked her shoulders. But instead of blood they left behind cold blue flesh.

Despite all this, it wasn't her tattoos, attire or stillness that were the most unsettling. It was her expression. Or her lack of one. There was no hint of a smile, or even a grimace. Her eyes were cold in the truest sense. They were totally devoid of emotion or feeling. Long, black hair hung past her shoulders. Loose save for her pure white bangs that hung in front of her face, tied by two simple grey hair-ties.

"Katara." Sokka said, trying his best not to shiver but failing.

"Where." She stated, her voice flat. She didn't ask, she only stated. She knew there was only one reason he would come for her.

"Roku's Island." He replied. He could at least be thankful for her being straight to the point. It meant he didn't have to spend any more time than he had to here.

"Fire tribe." She acknowledged. "Sedition?" The inflection of a question seemed wrong coming from a face as expressionless as hers. From a voice so flat.

"No. Not yet. I'll take the lead. If that fails, Iroh will try to appeal to them. Otherwise..." His voice trailed off.

"Ah, yes. Roku's Island. Iroh's people." She noted. "The timing is not ideal." She said, shifting the subject with abruptness.

"I know. Can you still do it?" Sokka asked, hating himself as he did.

"No." She answered. "But other options exist. I'll prepare."

Saying nothing, Katara turned away from Prince Sokka. She walked, almost completely barefoot, across the ice to the shelves. From there she picked up a book, took a seat and began to read. That was all Sokka needed. He turned and left the room. He tried not to rush, but it was hard not to when he had his back turned to his sister.


End file.
